


Luminary

by Time_is_fading



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting to Know Each Other, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Romantic Fluff, These two actually talked to each other, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, What-If
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-02
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2019-06-20 11:51:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15533619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Time_is_fading/pseuds/Time_is_fading
Summary: Space can be daunting, especially when they have to defend it from an evil empire. Yet, there are always moments of peace where they can stop and reflect on the people they've become. Changes happen ever so slightly, and one day they'll find themselves developing new abilities and new feelings. One conflict at the time.





	Luminary

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a year, and I'm ready to come back (not really, but I'll do my best). This will try to follow the canon as much as it can, obviously diverging every now and then. I wanted to make something soft and nice, but it's going to take a while so hang in there. Also, you may have seen the title before, its because I'm finally developing that idea. Without further ado, enjoy!

The low that came after an adrenaline high was an insult. Her body felt like lead, heavy and difficult to carry around. Her muscles burned with every movement she made, and the mere act of getting off her lion and walking to the bridge was the most difficult task in years. Standing on her feet proved to be quite a challenge when the slightest change in her balance threatened to send her toppling into the ground.

However, none of that compared to the mental exhaustion she was experiencing. Ever since they'd been trapped by the atmosphere of Naxcela, a myriad of non-stop thoughts had flown through their shared bond. The vast amount of information had been scrambled in her brain, and she had barely been able to process what was going on. Providing an explanation was notably more difficult than she’d initially thought, not to mention the solutions.

The worst part had definitely been the abstract thoughts. Images and emotions went through her head like a movie on fast-forward. It was dizzying, to say the least. She couldn't really translate these pictures into discernable ideas, so they remained meaningless shreds in her brain.

But then, there had been a moment when everyone seemed to synchronize, and the five of them became a single mind with a single purpose: escape. After that, the connection had been cut off suddenly, leaving an awkward silence inside her mind. Only dull pangs lingered, alongside an odd sensation of emptiness.

Yet, although the rest of the crew seemed to be sharing the discomforts of a terrible headache, she appeared to be the only one still dazed. There was a heaviness in the pit of her stomach that she couldn’t explain. While not paying attention to the recount at the observation deck, she noticed this. Everybody looked incredibly tired and somewhat defeated, but they showed no sign of feeling that same numbness. That could only mean it was a product of her own stress instead of their mutual one, which made the matter more concerning.

So, she continued to ignore the summary of what had just transpired to focus on that annoying void. She already felt like she was on the verge of fainting, might as well use that brain until it was drained.

Trying to pinpoint the exact moment when the little black hole had settled inside her guts was more difficult than expected. She hadn't perceived anything until it had reared its ugly head when they finally got some semblance of peace, but she suspected it had been there way before that happened. This led her to realize she hadn't been aware of herself for almost the entire battle, which opened a new can of worms all on its own.

She didn't want to follow that train of thought, especially not at that particular moment when important matters were being discussed. The only option left, if she wanted to at least get one thing done, was rejoining the conversation. She couldn't have chosen a worse time to do so.

"...not to defend Lotor or anything, but his sudden appearance did save our lives," said Hunk.

"You probably would've survived, but he did save our kamikaze hero over here," mentioned Matt in a far-too-casual tone to be believable, while offhandedly pointing to Keith.

Without sensing the unpleasant change in the atmosphere, or perhaps just ignoring it, he continued. "He was going to crash his ship into those darned shields to break them, can you believe it?" Matt even added a good chuckle, but it sounded awfully bitter.

Everything stayed quiet. All the stares were directed towards the boy in question, some accompanied with disbelief, others with disappointment. However, all it took were Matt's words and those few silent seconds for the small void inside her to grow into an abyss, coil into an unbearable vortex, and unravel in a supernova of anger.

“What is wrong with you? Why would you do such a thing?” she said before anyone else could speak. Her words came out far louder and harsher than she had intended.

Ever the hot-tempered guy, he quickly replied “Well, what else was I supposed to do? Let you all die?!”

“You could’ve tried to think for once in your life instead of throwing yourself right at the enemy like a fool!”

“I tried! And we didn’t have a lot of time, it was the only way!”

“Don’t you dare say that,” her voice went dangerously low. “There’s always another way and you know it.”

The fury in Keith’s eyes was visible now, fortunately, Shiro intervened before he could further reply.

“That’s enough, you two. Now’s not the time, nor the place, to fight.”

They both stopped arguing, but the tension in the room stayed. She refused to let go of that senseless ire, and let it sit uncomfortably in her gut for the rest of the meeting. It was better than feeling nothing. Once they were dismissed, she stormed off.

* * *

 

 

The adrenaline had stopped running through his veins hours ago, but he refused to rest. His muscles ached, yet he kept pushing himself through every kick and punch he aimed at the dummy. He focused on the pain his movements caused him, hoping it would distract him from his thoughts. He didn’t want to duel on the previous events of the day, and tiring himself out was the best way to achieve that. Besides, it had been a while since he had been in the castle, so he might as well take full advantage of it.

After the gathering had finished, he immediately headed out. The only person to beat him at it was Pidge, who ran away faster than him. He went in the opposite direction, which conveniently led to the training room. It was the perfect place to avoid everyone and let off some steam. There was a palpable tension between the team and him, so the best option was to stay away until the pressure had worn off. He wasn’t ready to face them, especially not after the things he had done.

However, no matter how effective this form of escapism was, it never lasted. At least, not as much as he wanted it to. Admitting defeat, he finally let his body relax and left. He didn’t know if he could still call the bedroom he had used before as his, so he opted for wandering the halls aimlessly. As the exhaustion took over his body, intrusive thoughts entered in his mind. This time, he had no way of keeping them at bay.

But before he could surrender to his head, he ran into someone. Pidge was coming from the other end of the hall, and her eyes widened upon landing on him. Instead of stopping, though, she walked towards him with more determination than before. He didn’t realize he was the one to freeze on his tracks until she was right in front of him.

“Hey, uh, I was looking for you,” she said not quite looking him in the eye. “Thought you’d be at the training room, though.”

“I was just there, actually.”

“Oh! That makes sense.”

“Yeah.” They let the silence drift between them, filling the atmosphere with an awkwardness that shouldn't be there. Luckily for him, she was the first one to break the spell.

“Listen,” she sighed. “I’m sorry about what happened there at the deck. I didn’t mean to be so rude.”

“Don’t worry about it. I kind of deserved it, anyway.” He shrugged, relieved that the unpleasant feel had dispersed.

“What? No! I was way out of line there. You should be mad!”

He chuckled slightly. “I was. But it’s fine now, really. Besides, I was rude too.”

“Well, you were defending yourself, so it’s understandable! But me-“

“You were worried, so it’s understandable.”

“Seriously, thanks. I was worried you wouldn’t talk to me.” Her mouth curved into a small smile, before quickly falling into a frown. “But I also wanted to tell you that I wasn’t really mad at you. I was just, very tired, you know? Exhausted, actually. And I was also feeling kind of weird, but that’s beside the point, I guess.”

“Pidge,” he said in hopes that she would stop rambling.

“Right! The thing is, it was easy for me to let it all out on you, and you didn’t deserve that.” Her eyes finally focused on his. “Sorry.”

Her gaze pierced him in an indescribable way, and he couldn’t help but respond with a genuine smile. “It’s ok. That battle was quite stressful for all of us.”

“I know, right?” she said with a newfound enthusiasm. “Um, do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really,” he rubbed the back of his head. “But maybe I should.”

“This may sound weird, especially after what I said before, but I don’t judge you. So, if you need someone to listen, then I’m all ears.”

“I might take you up on that offer.”


End file.
